Rampant corruption in Iraq's administrative sectors alarms lawmakers
A member of the Iraqi parliament has highlighted a recent case of extravagant costs for a tree planting project near an Iraqi government ministry.
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) - The spread of corruption in Iraq's administrative sectors continues to rise, with excessive spending becoming a dangerous phenomenon.
A member of the Iraqi parliament has highlighted a recent case of extravagant costs for a tree planting project near an Iraqi government ministry.
"The phenomenon of corruption in state institutions has increased to such an extent that sometimes we are bewildered," said Yasser al-Husseini, Deputy Chairman of the Economic Committee and a member of the Iraqi parliament.
He pointed out a particularly egregious example where planting a row of trees along a kilometer of a street in Baghdad cost an astonishing 124 billion dinars. He added that ongoing investigations are seeking original documents to present to the public.
"Corruption takes many forms, and perhaps the most obvious is excessive spending," al-Husseini remarked.
He noted that several monitored projects cost 10 to 30 times their actual value, perpetuating a continuous drain on the state treasury.
Statistics and information reveal significant corruption in Iraq's agricultural sector, including administrative and financial corruption and the waste of public funds.
Transparency International, a global movement working in over 100 countries to end the injustice of corruption, ranks Iraq 157th out of 180 countries in terms of corruption, with over $200 billion laundered and stolen annually from fake projects.
